Early May Showers…
Happy May Gleaners!
We’re back to kick off another month of food holidays and education with you!
May is Asian and Pacific Islander Month!
Here are some ways to celebrate and learn about the history, culture and achievements of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). As of 2017 there are 22.2 million Asian Americans in the US which is up 18% from 2010—the fastest growing ethnic community in the country!
Here are some ways to celebrate the month!
Learn the culture of AAPI peoples. PBS has an incredible documentary series about the history, identity, contributions and challenges unique to the AAPI community!
Try Origami via Origami.me to learn the history and techniques of Japanese paper folding
Make an Asian dish! This is an excellent way to explore new foods, new flavors and new combinations to increase your pallet!
Get takeout from a locally AAPI owned restaurant! This helps support your local businesses and encourages the growth and support of the AAPI communities near you!
Read a book with connections to AAPI culture! Here’s a great link to a List Of AAPI Books
Watch a movie by an AAPI creator! Bong Joon-ho recently won an Academy Award for “Parasite” (available on Hulu!). Other Korean films like “Burning” and “Train to Busan” are available to stream as well as “Crazy Rich Asians”, “The Farewell”, and “Searching”. Make a night of it and explore all areas of AAPI creations—they’re incredible!
Make homemade bubble tea! Bubble tea, originally from Taiwan, this delicious treat can be enjoyed in a million ways with a million different flavors! The “Bubbles” are generally made of tapioca flour that can sometimes be flavored and other times not. (Recipes here)
Discover Art from Asian Artists! Purchase local AAPI artworks, pottery, films, music, or take in some performance art by talented AAPI creators local to you!
Donate to your local AAPI organizations! In Pennsylvania that includes Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance and the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund among others. Here are 68 More ways to donate and support Asian Communities that are more varied and nationally centered.
May is BBQ, Egg, Lemonade, Salsa, Salad and Strawberry month!
WHAT A MOUTH FULL (Bad pun totally intended). Let’s explore these holidays separately so that you get a better feel for how you might even be able to celebrate them together!
BBQ Month
Barbeque is something that most everyone can and has enjoyed but have you ever thought of making your own sauce after tasting someone else’s and thinking “huh, it would be better if it just had____”? Well, look no further friends, because a simple homemade BBQ sauce is only 15 minutes away from gracing whatever foods you choose to put it on this month! (Homemade BBQ Recipe Here) but why stop with one. This is BBQ MONTH for a reason, ya’l! Why not take an opportunity this month to explore different BBQs when you get the chance! There are infinite possibilities to enjoy when you check out 100 BBQ Recipes.
Egg Month!
Eggs—the natural, protein packed superfood with a ton of benefits that just happen to come from your favorite fowl! They’re versatile and easy to cook, inexpensive and despite having cholesterol in the yolk they offer an enormous amount of health benefits. Let’s explore those:
Nutrients: Vitamins A, B5, B12, B2, B6, D, E, K, Selenium (cancer fighting antioxidant), Phosphorus (Healthy bones and teeth), Calcium (strong bones), Zinc (immune support), Protein, Healthy fat and Omega-3s!
Helps increase healthy cholesterol
Reduce the risk of heart disease
Good for Eye health
Lower the risk of breast cancer
See if you can explore new ways to utilize eggs in your diet to gain some of these benefits for yourself! (Farm fresh eggs are definitely around too—support local farmers and markets!)
Lemonade Month
Lemonade! The refreshing summer beverage that inspired the phrase “When life gives you lemons…” also has a lot to give when it comes to exploring new flavors and recipes. You can put almost any additional fruits into your lemonade along with a variety of herbs to explore a bunch of new flavors (Lavender Lemonade Recipe anyone?) Drink this with your other monthly holiday favorites (BBQ + Lemonade = Picnic Season Ya’ll)
Salsa Month
Even though we’re talking about the food and not the dance, don’t let that stop you from dancing when you try some of the many ways you can create salsa and use it for things this month! (Put it in your salads or eggs—change it up!). Salsa can be tracked back to the Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans who created their own versions using tomatoes, chilies and squash seeds and these recipes have been changed, adapted and altered over the years since to include the varieties we’re familiar with at backyard parties!
There are infinite ways to experience Salsa, so make sure you create your own, but here are 39 recipes to get you started on your salsa journey.
Salad Month!
Salads are some of the most versatile foods you can imagine! From adding French Fries (Pittsburgh style), to buffalo and BBQ sauce, fruits, nuts and even exploring things from the Midwest that are called salads but aren’t REALLY salads. Can’t forget about potato and macaroni salads that are at almost every gathering in Pennsylvania (Amish style, of course). At their core, generally salads, at least green ones, are made with assorted veggies and most typically a mixture of greens and other seasonal veggies and fruits. Explore this month with salads from a variety of different areas and see which you love!
Strawberry Month!
Strawberries—they’re delicious even if their season is fleeting. Most strawberries are in season for only 2-6 weeks a year (despite what the grocery store may have you think) so make sure you enjoy them while they’re the most fresh (and local!)
They have so many nutritional benefits and they can be added to salads, lemonade and salsa, ya’ll! Also they can be made into jams, jellies and dessert fillings that can be stored for enjoyment throughout the rest of the year (Store and preserve strawberries). Strawberries also:
Rich in antioxidants (benefit heart health and blood sugar control)
Rich in Vitamin C, Manganese, B9, Potassium (Good for immune health, skin, tissue and cell function, and blood pressure)
Can help reduce oxidative stress, inflammation, improve vascular function
May 5th is Cinco De Mayo
Cinco de Mayo, a celebration that a majority of folks in America celebrate with Mexican foods and cocktails, can be celebrated in any number of ways but most folks don’t know the history of the celebration. May 5th celebrates the day that the Mexican army defeated the French in 1862 during the Franco-Mexican war (no—it’s not Mexican independence day!). It is a relatively minor holiday in Mexico but culturally in the United States has evolved into a commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage. Chicano activists in the US raised awareness of the holiday in the 1960s in part because they identified with the victory of Indigenous Mexicans over European invaders during the Battle of Puebla. Today most celebrate with food, mariachi music, folk dancing and parades! Make sure you learn more about this holiday and celebrate locally with the Mexican community near you!
May 6th is International No Diet Day
Many folks have probably not heard of this international holiday, but it is definitely an important one so let’s talk about it!
This holiday was created to help shed the shame that typically gets associated with being anything less than “Hollywood star perfect”. There is a lot of social stigma surrounding unrealistic body types, unhealthy and dangerous fad diets and unrealistic expectations of beauty set by magazines, movies and photoshopped pictures in the public sphere. This day is intended to promote healthy lifestyles for all body types, shapes and sizes!
Started in 1992 by Mary Evans, this was meant to help folks around the world appreciate their own bodies for the incredible things that it can do! Mary was herself a survivor of Anorexia, wanted to promote not only healthy love for bodies of all types but also a way to follow diets that was sustainable.
This holiday is best celebrated by recognizing that your body is beautiful exactly as it is! De-emphasize your efforts to shed weight and look a certain idealized way—it’s far better to celebrate this holiday with efforts to begin a healthier lifestyle as opposed to attempting to get to a certain weight or look. Worry less about the final goal and more about getting and being active and keeping your body healthy and happy! Here’s a list of ways you can participate in this holiday!:
Help end weight discrimination, fatphobia and sizeism
Understand the inefficacy of commercial diets and learn about the diet industry
Embrace body diversity and challenge the idea of one “right” body shape
Declare a day that is free from dieting and obsessing about shape and weight
Compliment colleagues on contributions, achievements and skills rather than focusing on appearance.
Eat what you love! Don’t worry about calories or anything else—eat what you truly want because it tastes good today!
Throw away the scale! Don’t judge yourself based on a number!
Celebrate your intrinsic qualities such as uniqueness, quirkiness, kindness or strength!
Be adventurous and cook something you’ve always wanted to but never cooked before!
Make others aware of different eating disorders or educate yourself on them!
Seasons come and go and things definitely change! Here comes new produce!! In addition we’ve added a carousel gallery with produce photos from the highlights that we’ve got here. That way you all can appreciate the colors and can more easily find the produce we highlight!!
Apples
Arugala
Asparagus
Cabbage
Chard- Also known as swiss chard or rainbow chard, you can eat both the leaves and stems. You want crisp and perky leaves with firm healthy stems. If these are in the heat after picking, you can refresh them with their stems in water in a cool place! The stems can be made into hummus and the leaves can be eaten in salads or cooked in a dish!
Chives
Cilantro
Fava Beans
Fiddleheads
Garlic Scapes- These are the shoots of hardneck garlic varieties. Scapes should be firm but flexible and can be used to flavor things with garlic while not being too overbearing. They can be chopped and added to dishes in a similar way to Scallions/green onions
Green Onions
Lambs Quarters
Lettuce
Mint-the leaves of mint are great additions to meal spices and are great for teas that can help reduce inflammation and decrease headaches.
Morels
Mushrooms
Nettles
Onions
Oregano
Parsley
Parsnips
Pea Shoots
Peas
Purslane
Radishes
Ramps- They are peppery and pungent crosses between onion and garlic and are great additions to any food that would require those ingredients!
Rhubarb- tart and spring time vegetable with rosy-colored celery-esque stalks. Thinner stalks with good color tend to have the best taste and texture while thicker stalks can be more fibrous. Can be used in pies, jams and other recipes!
Rosemary
Sage
Sorrel
Spinach
Sprouts
Tarragon
Thyme
Tomatoes
Watercress- A leafy green vegetable with a peppery flavor that pairs well with duck and game meats. Can also be eaten in salads and on burgers!